Success(ion)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A seed lands, crack expands
Roots making life from hard rock
Water feeds new plant needs
In the shade of a great hemlock
Boulder becomes mineral crumbs
Roots, rock, rain in wedlock
Through sun and storms new soil forms
The tale of a forest epoch.
——————————————————
A Naturette Poem. A poetry form I invented to write about a tiny detail of nature.
The 8-line poem has the following rhyme scheme and syllable count:
6AA
8B
6CC
8B
6DD
8B
6EE
8B
Spicebush Swallowtail
_____________________________________
Spicebush swallowtail
Spicy leaves for the children
Purple petunia
The adult beverage of choice
While at this backyard resort
_____________________________________
Goldenrod
_____________________________________
Often blamed for causing sneezes
By hurling pollen on the breezes
Bees treasure these late fall flowers
Drink its tea for its healing powers
Considered a weed by so many
This humble plant’s benefits are plenty
_____________________________________
The Pokeweed
_____________________________________
Birds denude
Dark purple fruit for food
Around here they call it inkberry
*
Derided by many as unnecessary
Removal from the landscape is customary
Diligent birds replant it by seed
*
Can be messy indeed
The Pokeweed
_____________________________________
Sicyos angulatus
_____________________________________
The bur cucumber
Winds its way
Across fence lumber
Tendrils stray
*
An annual vine
On display
Hairy stems that twine
Prevent sway
*
Flowers licked by bees
On pathway
Spiny fruits don’t please
Deer today.
_____________________________________
(A Cromorna Poem)
Vernonia noveboracensis
_____________________________________
Tall purple bloom of New York Ironweed
Perched atop towering stiff eight foot stalks
Up at the level where butterfly feed
Safe far above where the deer family walks
Providing so much that native bugs need
Putting small birds near the pathway of hawks.
Vernonia noveboracensis
Flower clouds loom over garden fences.
The perennial grows wild in fields
Flowering in late summer’s shortening days
Feeding migrating butterflies and birds
Pollen and nectar this native plant yields
And seeds upon which the songbirds will graze
Useful and pretty describe in two words.
_____________________________________
(An Italian Sonnet)
Monotropa uniflora
_____________________________________
Mystery flower
Dusty waxy translucence
Beauty facing forest soil
Emerging within
The shelter of the tree trunk
From the cradle of downed leaves
Feeding on tree roots
Enchanting woodland magic
_____________________________________
(A Choka Poem)
Forbidden Dance
_____________________________________
Quaker
Ladies dancing
To the beat of the breeze
Stopping only when the music does
Ready
_____________________________________
(A Crapsey Cinquain)
Bloodroot
_____________________________________
Breaking ground early spring
Before many others
Boldly emerging white
Brightening dormant ground
Buds rise through folded leaves
Bloom balanced atop stem
Becoming full with sun.
_____________________________________
(A Pleiades Poem)
A Picture and a Poem 